Gage for use in connection with fluid distribution.



No. 650,065. I Patented May 22, I900.

A, KIT-SON. GAGE FOR USE IN CONNECTION WITH FLUID DISTRIBUTION.

(Application filed Apr. 8, 1899.) (No Model.)

Ia-Ii rm: NORRIS PETERS 0o, wuoramqo, wasv maron. a c.

NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR KITSON, or PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSieNoR To THE KITSON HYDROOARBON HEATING AND INOANDESCENT LIGHTING COM- PANY, or SAME PLACE AND CHARLESTON, wEsT VIRGINIA.

GAGE FOR USE IN CONNECTION WITH FLUID DISTRIBUTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 650,065, dated May 22, 1900. Application filed April 3, 1899. Seria1N0r'71L560. (No model.)

To all whom it nttty concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR KITSON, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, and a resident of Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, .5 State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gages for Use in Connection with Fluid Distribution, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to systems for the dis- J tribution of fluids under pressure, and is more specifically designed to produce an automatioally-closing system which will operate to prevent leakage of fluid when any of the coniections are broken. In the use of vaporburninglamps, forinstance, oil is supplied under pressure from the tank through a system of tubing to a number of said lamps, and it becomes desirable to have some simple and efficient means for automatically closing the tubes and checking the flow of oil in case one of the branches or any of the connections become broken. It is also desirable to relieve the system from pressure without at the same time allowing the oil to flow out in case the j building gets on fire. My improved check- Valve system accomplishes both these results.

The preferred construction of valve and arrangement of the same are illustrated in the accompanying sheet of drawings, in which Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of an oiltank and a system of tubing connected therewith. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail of the upper gage-glass connection with the tank. Fig. 3 is anenlarged sectional detail of check-valve 1ocated at each branch of tubing. Fig. 4 is a similar section of the check-valve located at the lower gage-glass connection. Fig. 5 shows a modification.

Throughout the drawings like reference-figo ures refer to like parts.

The tank 1, preferably formed of steel, contains a certain amount of oil and a certain amount of air under pressure; The air forces the oil up through the filter 2 by means of a 5 pipe extending from said filter down into the interior of the reservoir and nearly to the bottom thereof in the usual manner (not shown, however, in the drawings) and main line of tubing 3 to the various branch lines of tub- Eaoh of these branch lines is 50 ing 4 4, (to.

controlled by a hand-valve 5 5, &c., and also has one of a series of check-valves 6 6 lo cated at the point where the branch leaves the main. The tank is also provided with the ordinary gag'e glass 7, through which the level of the oil in the tank can be determined. This gage-glass of course has an upper connection 8 and a lower connection 9 with the tank, the upper connection opening into the air-space and the lower connection into the oil-space. These connections are also provided with the ordinar hand-valves 1O 10. The upper connection preferably has only a contracted passage-way 11, through which the air can pass to the gage-glass 7, and this connection may also have an opening filled with a plug of fusible material 12. At the lower connection 9 I insert a check-valve 6 of the shape shown in Fig. 4, which has a Valve-chamber 13, with an overhead seat 14. The loose valve-plunger is adapted to rise against said seat and close the outlet-passage from the valve-chamber.

' One or more inlet-orifices 16 are formed in the valve-chamber below the valve-seat. The valve-plunger 15 has a small spindle 17 projecting downwardly and working in a guide formed in the removable cap 18, which forms the bottom of the valve-chamber. The valve 6 (shown in Fig. 3) has two inlet openings 16 16 on either side of the valve-chamber and below the valve-plunger, so that there is always a free passage -way through it and through the sections of the supply-pipe connected thereto to other branch pipes, whether or not communication is closed to the particular branch pipe which said valve controls.

In the modified form shown in Fig. 5 a screw 19 is tapped into the head or cap 18 in such position that the spindle 17 abuts against it. The valve-opening can then be adjusted by means of the screw 19 without removing cap 18.

To facilitate the opening of the check-valve after it has automatically closed, the vent cook 20 is tapped into the casing and connects with the valve-chamber below the valve.

The gage-cock 10 should then be changed to.

The methodof operation of my invention is as follows: The tankl being filled with oil say to the level of 19-and the upperportion filled with air at the usual pressure of about fifty ponnds,oil flows through the filter 2, main line 3, and branches 4,4 to the lamps or other consuming devic es. The plunger 15 'of the cheCk-valveiS in'i tsnormal or lowered posi tion, (shown in Fig. 4,f) and thefini'dfpassesj freely at slow speed through the check-valve to they variousjbranches and toor from the gage-glass, 7'.

responding check valve 6".

: few drops of 'oil will escape if the tube is sawed in two. The hand-valve 5 in the broken branch is then closed and the break repaired. As .Zonly an infinitesimal quantity of "oil is needed to till the. branch tube 4 between the check-valved andthe hand-valve 5, the same may slowly ooze through the. check-valve by the time the repairs are completed, and the equalityof pressure being established on the twofsides of the plunger 15 it will drop down K into. position shown in Fig. 4, and communicationwill be reestablished. If it doesnot drop-down of itself, a sharp blow on the valve witha hammer will jar it down. On reopen-, ing'the hand-valve 5 gradually the oil will pass through and f llthe remainder of the branch tubevand communication with the particular lamp fed thereby will be reestablished. When a vent-cock suchas is shownin Fig. 5 is used, the pressure can be immediately relieved, so that the check-valve will drop open by opening said vent-cock 20. The mode of operation is the same when the formshown inFig. 5 is used at the lower end of the gage through the burning build in g, thereby greatly aggravating the conflagration.

of my invention, howeven-the presence of the fi'rsttongne of flame will crack the gage-glass 7 or melt the fusible plug 12, the checkvalve 9 will instantly close and stop the flow At the same time the air trapped in the upper part of the tank will slowlyescape through the contracted passage-way 11 in the upper connection 8 and the oil remaining in the tank will simply be left under atmospheric pressure in an almost fireproof receptacl'e, so that the danger will be less than would'be'thecase if the samequantity of oil were storedjin an ordinary tin can forordinary uses.

prevents the loss of oil in case the gage-glass 1 I In case one-of the lamps-breaks or one of thebranch tubes 4 is cut there willv be a g atlync eased flq t ug h co d This greater ve-- T locity means considerable difference of press With the use The same operation of course E is broken by being accidentally struck at any time. H l- The amount of increase in the velocity of the fluid passing through the check-valve necessary to close the'same can be determined and adjnstedin fou'nt. shown in Figs. 3 and. 4

by removing the cap 18- or other removable guide. forithespindle 17.1of the valve and dle, thereby determining the normal opening of the valve. It is evident of course that the greater this normalopening the greater theamount of fluid which the valve will pass with- "out closing. A

7 Itis evident, ot'course, that various changes could be made in the details of construction illustrated without departing from the spirit and scope of myinvention so long as the relative arrangement of parts shown in the-draw ings or the principle of operation -setforth in the-specification is preserved. {Other forms of valve-plunger and valve-chamber might be used, a different removable guide might 1 be substituted for the cap 18, the fusible plug 12 might be made of dilferent size andshape, 850.; but these are changes of form and not of substance, and I regard the modifications so produced'as still within the scope of my invention.

Having therefore described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to protect by Letters Patent, is-

r 1. In a system for distributing fluid under pressure, the combination of the pressure tank, the gage-glass mounted on the side of the same, and connected thereto ateachend, and the outwardly-closing check-valve in the lower connection, the upper connection being provided with only an extremely-coir tracted air passage-way communicating with the upper pressure-tank,together with a valve located between saidcontracted airv passage- I way and the connection to the pressure-tank.

y 2. In a system for distributingfluids under pressure, the combination of the pressuretank, the gagerglass mounted on the side of the same and connected thereto at each end, and the outwardly-closing check-valve in .the lower connection, together with the upper connection having an opening'closed.withfusible material.

3. In, a-system for distributing fluids under pressure, the combination of the pressuretank, the gage-glass mounted on thelside of the same and connected thereto at .each end, and the outwardly-closing checkrvalv'ein the lower connection, together with the upper connection having an opening closed with f-usible material, and havingonly an extremelycontracted' air passage-way communicating,

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 650,065, granted May 22, 1900, upon the application of Arthur Kitson, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for an improvement in Gages for Use in Connection with Fluid Distribution, an error appears in the printed specification requiring correction, as follows: In line 73, page 2, the word fount should read forms and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Ofiice.

Signed, countersigned, and sealed this 29th day of May, A. 1)., 1900.

[SEAL] F. L. CAMPBELL,

Assistant Secretary of the Interior. Countersigned G. H. DUELL,

Commissioner of Patents. 

